Return of the Mythic Bloodline

"Absorption completed.

Soulforce absorbed: 969k/969k."

A cold breeze kissed my face as I opened my eyes.

"Oh boy, it's been so long since I had this feeling," I announced as I stared at the eternal night sky of the Forest of Gumiho. "I'm finally back—"

"Th...thank goodness," Nymeria wept, hugging me tightly.

"Pretty lady, you alright?"

"I should be the one—sob...sob—asking that. You shouted something about dying and then—sob...sob—your whole body turned purple like those cursed beasts," she murmured between gasps. "I thought... I was going to lose you again."

"Again?" I thought inwardly but decided not to ask her and accepted her embrace, gently touching the back of her head.

"Don't worry, pretty lady. I'm not going to die that easily."

She remained like that for a few minutes before finally letting me go.

"Congratulations!! You have completed the Subquest.

Subquest:

→ Free Gumiho from her agony by absorbing the cursed Soulforce: completed

[Claim the reward]"

A proud smirk appeared on my face as I declared, "Vyaghra, your goddess is safe now."

Vyaghra and Jambavan's eyes lit up the moment they heard my announcement. Both of them bolted toward us simultaneously.

Gumiho's body had stopped disintegrating and turned into a small one-tailed pink fox barely the size of a cat.

She was sleeping without a care in the world, so I picked her up gently. She buried her mouth in my chest and fell asleep again, clutching my chest with her little paws.

Vyaghra didn't ask me how I saved her or why she had taken this form. The only thing that mattered to him was that his Queen was no longer in danger.

"You have my utmost gratitude, Raj," Vyaghra bowed his head, his tone laced with gratitude and guilt. "Please forgive me for my earlier insolence."

"Sigh, I don't know, man," I shrugged my shoulders. "I risked my life to cure you, and the first thing you did after getting better was put your claws on my neck. Then you asked me to help your Queen; I did that as well, and what did you do? You punched the heck out of me." I wiped a fake tear from my eye as I declared, "I've only been suffering and getting nothing in return."

"Raj's right, Vyaghra. Yer exhortin' the poor kid," Jambavan said, adding pressure.

"Due to my worries for the Queen, I have been ignorant and didn't treat you justly," Vyaghra replied. "Is there anything you wish to have, Raj?"

I placed my hand on my mouth, hiding my obviously visible smirk beneath it, and mumbled, "No idea, buddy. You tell me if there's something you possess that can be deemed worthy of my accomplishments."

Vyaghra sighed dejectedly. "You have saved the Goddess of all beasts. There is no treasure in this world that can be worthy of your achievement, nor do I possess anything valuable that could be greatly helpful to you." He drew a pair of obsidian daggers from his robe and spoke further, "I only have myself and these weapons, given to me by my late father."

"I don't need these ugly daggers."

"Ug... ugly?" He stammered but decided not to throw a tantrum.

"If you don't need them, then I only have myself to offer you."

"Sorry, Vyaghra," I touched his shoulder. "But I'm not into men—or male beasts, if I have to clarify for you."

"Bwahahaha, did ya just get rejected? By a man? Bwahaha!" Tears rolled down Jambavan's face as he repeatedly hit his stomach while laughing.

Vyaghra gave a quick death stare to Jambavan before clarifying, "I meant that I am willing to serve you as my lord and obey your every order without question."

"What if I tell you to kill Gumiho?"

His expression immediately flipped, and his golden eyes gazed at me, warning me to say that again.

"Just look at your face, and you said you can follow my every order without question," I said in a sharp voice. "I don't want someone who'll blindly follow my orders. I already have Vajra for that. I need someone who can guide me along the way, who can stop me if I start going down the wrong path. I don't need a weapon—I need a friend, because I don't have any in this world."

"Fr... friend?" Vyaghra whispered.

It was a difficult request for him. He had never had someone he could call a friend. And the reason was obvious; he just hated the very concept of friendship. I remembered how he bickered with Ruru about the topic in the memories.

"But-but friends are—"

"A superstitious relation?" I completed his sentence and spoke further, "I don't care. That's what I want."

Vyaghra gave me a puzzled look, as if asking if that's what I really wanted, but after seeing the determination on my face, he let out a sigh and replied, "I don't know what being a friend really means, but I heard they share gifts when becoming one."

He moved towards me and, touching my forehead, declared, "So this is the token of my friendship."

A black energy emerged from the contact and absorbed into my mark.

Ding...

"Congratulations!!! You have received the Blessing of the God of Hunt and Stealth – Mystic Tiger Vyaghra."

"Blessing of Vyaghra: When activated, the Host's body merges with the rhythm of nature, rendering the Host undetectable by sight, sound, or Soulforce detection. The effect breaks if the Host makes sudden movements or interacts physically with the environment."

"Heck yeah, finally got it," I shouted inwardly. "This kitty was the only one who didn't give me a blessing and also almost dislocated my jaw."

I tapped his shoulder and spoke with an irrepressible smirk on my face, "Since you've become my friend, I'll properly use—ahm...ahm—I mean, teach you what friendship exactly means."

At that moment, Vyaghra, who had feared no one, felt a chill down his spine. He wondered as I moved past him, "Have I really made the right choice?"